The present invention is directed generally to a practice backstop for ball playing sports and more particularly to a large yet lightweight and readily collapsible backstop which is most useful as a practice backstop for golf, soccer, baseball, football, tennis or any other sports involving the use of a ball.
The large permanent backstops commonly installed on baseball and softball diamonds are ill-suited for use in residential yards because of the size, cost and permanence. Furthermore, most such backstops are constructed with a fence fabric which is not adapted to stop balls as small as a golf ball.
Lightweight practice nets are available but these are supported by large cumbersome steel frames having a netting suspended therefrom and a plurality of tie-down cords that require ground penetrating stakes for securing the frame. Whereas such nets may be operative for golf, they typically are not designed to withstand the impact of larger heavier balls such as baseballs, softballs, footballs and the like. Furthermore, the frames, even when collapsed remain of substantial dimension thereby making storage and transport both difficult and inconvenient.
A primary object of the present invention, therefore, is to provide an improved practice backstop for ball playing sports.
Another object is to provide such a backstop which is self-supporting for ready placement on any support surface, indoors or out.
Another object is to provide such a backstop which is of large dimension, sturdy in construction and adapted for receiving and stopping balls as small as a golf ball and as large and heavy as softballs and footballs.
Another object is to provide such a backstop which has mesh walls and floor for placement on a lawn without blocking exposure of the covered grass to sun and water.
Another object is to provide such a backstop which includes a three-dimensional shock absorbing frame which co-acts with a separate target sheet suspended in spaced relation therefrom for absorbing the impact of balls directed into the backstop.
Another object is to provide such a backstop with a rear wall and forwardly extended sidewalls for containing balls directed against a separate target sheet suspended therein in spaced relation from the rear wall.
Another object is to provide such a backstop which may be easily collapsed into a lightweight compact package for convenient storage and transport.
Another object is to provide such a backstop which is simple and rugged in construction, economical to manufacture and efficient in operation.